


The Missing Piece

by Poches



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Developing Relationship, Elf/Human Relationship(s), F/M, Friendship, Male-Female Friendship, Platonic Female/Male Relationships, mothafuckin chess
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-06
Updated: 2015-09-06
Packaged: 2018-04-19 11:20:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,366
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4744406
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Poches/pseuds/Poches
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Cullen catches Lavellan cheating at chess and beats her anyways, Lavellan is furious and determined to make a comeback and goes all out on it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Missing Piece

“Well, I believe the game is mine.”

Cullen’s smug declaration stilled Lavellan’s idle fidgeting. She abruptly stopped cleaning her nails and looked up to stare at him in surprise “Wait, what?”

“Checkmate. See for yourself.” He pointed at the pieces and her eyes followed. Indeed, there was no way out for her. She studied the pieces and shook her head. “No. No way. How did you even…when did you…” Lavellan’s words trailed off as she scrutinized the board. Her thick, dark brows knitted into a confused expression.

“Dorian cheats at this as well.” Cullen couldn’t restrain his smug smirk from growing. To see the Inquisitor, herald of Andraste, hero of Haven, so confused yet awed somehow amused him. Then again, he had earned his mastery at this game, and so Cullen basked in his victory a little more. “You didn’t really think you could slip by me, did you?”

  
Lavellan’s lips pursed together and her cheeks (now becoming quite pink, much to Cullen’s delight and amusement) puffed out in indignation. She really thought she could bypass the commander’s eye. If she could beat Solas ,that stupid sneaky egg, at Diamondback, she figured, why couldn’t she just do the same to Cullen? The man was awful at cards. Surely he wouldn’t notice a few choice pieces missing. _“So how in Fen’harel’s tricky prick did he catch me?!”_

She broke her silence with a growl. “You clever bastard. You clever _fucking_ bastard.” The way she said it somehow made it seem like a compliment as well as an insult.

Cullen laughed and began to rise from his seat. “Well, it was a pleasure, Inquisitor.”

“We should do this more often.”

“What?”

“I said, we should do this more often.” Lavellan kept her eyes directly on him. Challenging him. Cullen shivered slightly, unable to even nervously dart his eyes away from her face.

  
“I would like that.” he finally managed to reply.

She got out of her seat and scooted it back into proper position. “Good. Because I intend to crush you. Let us meet another day, yes?” Lavellan started to walk away from the board and to her plants. “Sometime next week, maybe.” She said flippantly over her shoulder.

But as she walked away, Cullen gulped. She was angry. Furious, even. She was demanding a rematch and was preparing to go all out on it. A part of him felt nervous. Lavellan was known for her determination and willpower. If she wanted something to be done, she would find a way, no matter how long it took. She was small and little in every single way, but she could have the world at her feet if she wanted.

He had to feel proud though, to have gotten her attention, to actually be seen as a threat of sorts, a challenge. Cullen started the walk back to his office, grinning.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------

For the duration of the week, Lavellan seemed to never take her eyes off the chess manual she’d acquired from the library. It was with her during meals, in her bed, when she was taking her daily walks, in the garden with her while she tended to her plants, even during war meetings. It took no small effort for Cullen not to snicker.

She challenged Dorian to games. She challenged Solas and Vivienne and Leliana and even the soldiers, anyone who would look at the board. Soon, soldiers were crowding around her and her opponent in the barracks, observing the game and making bets. Cullen pushed his way through the crowd until he finally reached the clearing where the game was being held.

“Inquisitor, maybe you could come back later? We’re about to run some drills and—“

“Perhaps.” Lavellan replied without even looking up. “But I have excused Private Christoph for the sake of urgent business.”

The soldier looked up with an apologetic look that didn’t seem genuine at all. “Sorry, commander. Inquisitor’s orders.”

“Really? Urgent business? Inquisitor…” he started, and then stopped short. She still had not looked up from the board, but her stare was on him for a good second or two. Without another word, her eyes went back to the game. Cullen shook his head. Nothing he did would help him at this point. He promptly left the barracks, and threw his hands into the air in exasperation the moment he was out. “Alright troops, come on. Gather your things. All of you out, already!”

\----------------------------------------------------------------------

She had lost again. There had been no more cheating ever since the first game, and she had been making tremendous progress. Still, she had a long way to go. Throughout their games, Lavellan had been maintaining a calm look on her face, but now her face had begun to betray her frustrations. She was gritting her teeth. He could tell by the way her jaw had tightened, and noticed the fists on her thighs were clenching harder.

“This game,” he said, “is also mine, Inquisitor.”

She looked at him, but said nothing. Her eyes went to her lap, and she seemed to be retreating into silent defeat. Cullen felt his chest hurt at the scene. It was rare to ever see her even slightly dejected.

“Come now, Inquisitor. You can do better than that.”

She immediately looked up at him and glared, dark eyes threatening to bore a hole in his chest. The corners of her lips twitched. “Fine. Next week. Same time. Don’t you try to weasel away.”

Cullen laughed lightly and smiled easily at her, glad she had taken the bait. “I wouldn’t miss it for the world.” As he left, her eyes stayed fixated on the board, as if burning the position of the pieces into her mind. She crossed her legs and stayed right there for the rest of the afternoon.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------

Cullen tried his best not to cry laughing at his desk when he received the reports from Scout Harding. Apparently the prized chess set had not left her side, even out in the wilds of Emprise du Lion. She asked every single scout, every single soldier for a game. She had even specifically brought Vivienne and Dorian and Bull for the sole sake of continuing their practice sessions. Lavellan demanded at least one game a day. Whenever there was respite, she asked for a game.

He could easily imagine it. Everyone shivering in their tents, and suddenly a bundle of white hair worming its way inside, chessboard in its hands. The Inquisitor, little Lavellan, cheeks and nose in blooming pinks on her white face, demanding a game in frosty puffs of breath. And no one being able to say no to that look on her face, the way her eyes narrowed ever so slightly as she asked.

He had really lost it at the part where the chessboard was, unfortunately, retired from a red Templar ambush. She had sacrificed it as a shield, swiftly blocking Dorian from shards of red lyrium and then using it to smash the same attacking horror in the face. The board went in splinters, as did the horror shortly after.

“Such a shame.” Dorian recalled as he positioned his piece. “It was a perfectly good board. But I appreciated the sentiment behind it. Literally.”

Cullen chuckled, shortly moving his own piece. He knew most of Dorian’s tricks at this point. “I just can’t believe she’s going this far. Over a little game?”

The other man studied the board for a few moments before making his move. “Well, you know her. When she does something, she means to do it. No half measures. It’s all or nothing for that one.”

“Then we should be glad she’s the one who will fight Corypheus. If she’s half as determined to defeat me at _board game_ as she is to defeat a darkspawn magister with a bloody dragon, then I think we should spare a prayer for him.”

Dorian laughed and pressed another piece on. “Right? She’d crush the poor thing. Your move.”

\----------------------------------------------------------------------

It was easy to find her during the next few days.

She was always in the library, in the same place, surrounded by books, and all of them chess strategy manuals. Cullen had almost mistaken her for a pile of books on a chair. Lavellan looked up from the pages when she noticed someone blocking her light. Realizing who it was, she wasted no time going back to her reading.

“You’ve been at it for weeks, Inquisitor.” Cullen started. She offered no response. “Is this really that important to you? Don’t you have other things to do in your free time?”

“What, are you going to have me back out now, commander?” she said behind her book. He snorted. “No, I was just merely suggesting that you’ve become…how do I put it, obsessed? I just think you could focus on other things, like---“ Lavellan shut her book, producing a dull thump, cutting off his words.

Cullen stopped and watched her in nervous anticipation, waiting for her to say something in response. But she had simply picked up another book and continued her reading. After a moment or two of scanning the pages, she spoke again.

“I am determined to beat you, commander. Whatever it takes.”

She said that, but he also knew what it meant. There was many a time where he considered offering to scrim with her, or give her pointers, but he knew she would never accept. So there was a tacit agreement between them; she would not ask for his help, and he would not offer it. Such was the way of Inquisitor Lavellan. “Plus, I believe I can decide for myself what to do with my own free time.”

“I’ll leave you to it, then.” he said, heading towards the stairs.

“Yes. Thank you, commander. See you tomorrow.” This time she had looked up from her book, and nodded a little farewell to him.

“Good luck.” Cullen smirked.

Lavellan rewarded him with a small, warm smile. His heart skipped a beat and his breath stopped. It was rare to see her smile like that.

Then she opened her mouth. “You’re going to need it.” And she promptly went back to her book, thumb on her lips.

He sighed and shook his head, smiling on the way to his office. That part of him that enjoyed watching her efforts felt a bit flattered. She was working so hard just to beat him at a _game_. And they both seemed to be enjoying it in their own ways.

Yet he had to wonder what would happen if she finally won. Cullen had been enjoying their games. Just being able to take time off and get together to do something not war-related was enjoyable and relaxing, even if she made the air feel a lot more intense than it had to be. Perhaps that was something that made it enjoyable. Cullen admired her passion in all of the things she did. Would it be gone once she had achieved her goal? Would she just get bored and take her victory?

A stack of paperwork set on his desk politely interrupted his thoughts.

Ah, well.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------

She’d done it. It was long, it was difficult, and it was infuriating, but she had done it. Lavellan had finally taken his king.

When she had, she slammed the winning piece down. “There! Checkmate! Your king is mine!” Lavellan shouted excitedly. “Yes! Read it and weep, Cullen _fucking_ Rutherford! Ha HA! Yes! _YES!_ ”

No matter how many times Cullen wracked his brain for an escape route, a loophole, a rule he could exploit, he found nothing. She had him pinned and did it beautifully, and she was basking in it, jumping from her chair and dancing about. She was even giggling a little bit. Inquisitor Lavellan, the herald of Andraste and brutal slayer of dragons with a stone-face, was _giggling_ over a chess match.

“Oh Creators, that just feels so _so_ good! I have been waiting for this!” Lavellan grinned wickedly at him. “How’s it feel, eh?”

“Pretty good, actually. I’m proud of you.” He smiled at her warmly. For a moment, a flash of confusion crossed her face, but she nodded.

“Damn straight you better be proud of me. Mythal’s tits, how long _was_ that game?” she glanced at the sky for an indication. “I was about ready to beat you to death with the board and stick the pieces up your nose.” Cullen snorted at the image despite the fact he knew full well she could go through with that threat.

“Inquisitor, please. You’ve already wrecked one board.”

The boastful grin resurfaced. “Well I think I’ve just wrecked another one.”

“Point taken.”

He started cleaning up the pieces and the board, taking his time. “So…does this mean our games are over now that you’ve finally defeated me?”

She looked at him as if he were an idiot. “What? No.”

“No?” Cullen had half-expected her to stop playing with him the minute she had won. Her goal had been achieved. What else did she want?

“No. At first, yes, that was the plan.” Lavellan admitted, playing with a lock of her hair. “Just kick the shem’s ass and go back to whatever I was doing. That was the initial plan.” She shrugged, combing the locks out with her fingers and then stopping when satisfied. “Kind of why I cheated in the first place. “

“But I have to say, I think I understand you some more, Cullen. I had to work hard for this victory, just like you did, and it was…” Lavellan paused before starting again. “It was enjoyable. I had a lot of fun. And you’re a craftier bastard than I thought you were. I had initially thought you were simply all about brute force.” He made a face at that comment.

“Hey now, I’ve seen your strategies.” he pointed a finger at her. “Just because you do it with magic doesn’t mean it’s suddenly not brute force.”

Lavellan laughed. “True, I suppose. But at least it’s prettier. So,” She grinned at him. “Next time as usual?”

Cullen couldn’t restrain his growing smile. “I would like that.”

“Good. Because I’m going to kick your ass again.”

He couldn’t wait.

**Author's Note:**

> This is my headcanon after I watched that scene with Lunaya Lavellan, my smol angry-eyebrow baby. More about her on my tumblr, kidgoober.
> 
> At first she would just be like "fine whatever sure" but afterwards she'd be like "Oh you are going DOWN." Cue weeks, if not months, of getting frustrated and wanting to beat Cullen to death with the chessboard. She just got more into it that she thought she would.
> 
> Note that I this could be read as either a budding relationship or developing friendship (with rival undertones). I wanted to keep it ambiguous. Though I did notice some elements where it might lean more romantic, platonic relationships are important too, dammit!


End file.
